Addiction Treatment and Relapse Prevention

by Psychological Assistant Stephen Brewer

 

Learning how to overcome an addiction can help you regain healthy control over your life, and so much more. Being addicted to something usually means that you have an unhealthy relationship with whatever you are addicted to.

Stephen’s goal in addiction counseling is to help you develop a healthy relationship with the object of your addiction. Whether you are addicted to alcohol, drugs, the internet, or any other thing, we can discover together whether it is time to break up with your addiction, or time to simply redefine your relationship with your addiction.

When we work through an addiction, old behaviors can resurface in the form of relapses. Whether you decide to break up or redefine your relationship, we will create a relapse prevention plan so that you can minimize relapses and know how to work through relapses if they happen.


Help for Alcohol Abuse, Drug Dependency, and other Addictions

Stephen is a San Diego Counselor, Therapist, and nationally syndicated columnist who specializes in therapy for relapse prevention and counseling for addictions including:

  1. • Alcohol abuse

  2. • Chemical Dependency (Crystal Meth, Cocaine, Ecstasy)

  3. • Smoking

  4. • Gambling Addiction

  5. • Internet misuse (World of Warcraft addition)


Addictions affect not only your life, but the lives of your family members and friends. A specialist in addiction counseling can work with any of the following relapse prevention models that would best serve you:


  1. • 12 Step

  2. • SMART Recovery

  3. • Community Reinforcement Model

  4. • Rational Recovery

  5. • Moderation Management


If you would like to read more about Stephen’s approach to treating addictions and therapy for relapse prevention, please read this article.

The Love-Hate Relationship with Alcohol

San Diego Addiction Counselor

“We may think there is willpower involved, but more likely... change is due to want power. Wanting the new addiction more than the old one. Wanting the new me in preference to the person I am now.”

~ George A. Sheehan


Addictions often happen before we are aware of our behaviors, and the consequences of addictions can range from mild to very severe.


Behind every addiction is a person who is fundamentally intelligent, sensitive, and good. The addiction is only a mask that hides a person’s true persona.

Help with New Year’s resolutions!


New Year’s resolutions are one way that we often attempt to address our addictions. As with any addiction, New Year’s resolutions can be vulnerable to the occasional relapse when old behaviors begin to take over.


A counselor or therapist can help you achieve your New Year’s resolutions by helping you develop a relapse prevention plan. With a relapse prevention plan, you are much more likely to stick to your new year’s resolution!


For immediate tips, read my blog entry on New Year’s resolutions:

New Year’s resolutions and Why We Break Them